Senators want answers from gymnastics chief

USA Gymnastics has failed to report to police many allegations of sexual misconduct by coaches. That allowed predatory coaches to continue working with children for years after the organization was warned.
Robert Scheer/IndyStar

USA Gymnastics president Steve Penny during the women's gymnastics U.S. Olympic team trials at SAP Center in San Jose, California.(Photo: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports)

Four U.S. senators wrote a letter to USA Gymnastics President Steve Penny on Friday, expressing "deep concern" about the organization's handling of sex abuse allegations about coaches.

The letter, citing an IndyStar investigation published Thursday, urged Penny to "take specific actions to ensure that allegations of sexual abuse are promptly reported to appropriate authorities and law enforcement, so that children are protected."

The letter was written by Democratic Sens. Joe Donnelly of Indiana, Dianne Feinstein of California, Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut.

It urged Penny to provide information on how "coaches or others who supervise children are vetted." It also asked for greater clarity on USA Gymnastics' policies on reporting sexual abuse to authorities and how those policies have evolved over the past 20 years.

The senators were among several public officials and sports executives who reacted to IndyStar's findings that top executives of USA Gymnastics seldom, if ever, reported allegations of sexual abuse to police without being prompted. IndyStar documented four cases in which USA Gymnastics compiled sexual abuse complaint files on coaches but did not report the allegations to authorities. Those four coaches went on to molest at least 14 children, according to police and court records.

One of those victims is suing USA Gymnastics in a Georgia court. The evidence in that case includes dossiers compiled by USA Gymnastics on 54 coaches accused of sexual abuse over 10 years. The judge has sealed those records, but IndyStar filed a motion seeking to make them public.

Scott Blackmun, CEO of the U.S. Olympic Committee, said Friday that national governing bodies such as USA Gymnastics have evolved in combating sexual abuse, and that current USOC policy is to report "credible" allegations to police without internal investigation.

While speaking at a news conference at the Olympics in Brazil, Blackmun described as "horrific" the sexual abuse crimes described in the first story of IndyStar's multipart investigation.

Blackmun said his organization's sexual abuse policy is "pretty state-of-the-art." But he did not define what constitutes a "credible" allegation that would prompt a report to law enforcement.

The IndyStar investigation revealed that USA Gymnastics accepts only complaints that are based on "firsthand information" and are signed by either a victim or a victim's parent. Other allegations of child sexual abuse are routinely dismissed as "hearsay," based on a policy of the organization's top executives, according to court documents.

Child advocates and legal experts told IndyStar that the best practice is to report all allegations to child welfare or law enforcement. Laws in every state require people to report suspected child abuse.

"I think the way USA Gymnastics and many other NGBs (national governing bodies) — not just USA Gymnastics — may have dealt with this 15 years ago is very different than what we feel is an appropriate way to deal with it today,” Blackmun said. "I think if you look at the different approaches people took in 2000 versus what we are all doing today, I think we would all say the best practice today is to refer to law enforcement."

In a lawsuit brought by a Georgia abuse survivor, USA Gymnastics officials testified that they were reluctant to report alleged sex abuse by coaches because of the potential impact on their reputations.

Penny, president of USA Gymnastics since 2005, said in a deposition that his understanding of the law was that reporting isn't required if you have thirdhand information. Experts told IndyStar that's inaccurate, saying firsthand information is not required for reporting, and that any investigation should be left to professionals in child welfare and law enforcement.

Also Friday, the IndyStar investigation prompted the group Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) to call for Penny's resignation in a news release.

"Any other officials in the organization who have refused to report allegations of child sex abuse to law enforcement should step down too," the news release said.

It added, "Words don’t protect kids, action does. And no act more quickly stops reckless behavior than when those who act recklessly are fired."

During USOC's news conference, Blackmun was asked whether Penny should resign. He did not take a position on the question.

"We’ll see what facts are uncovered, but what I can say is that USA Gymnastics and Steve Penny as an individual have been very aggressive in their desire to have policies, procedures and investigative resources in place," Blackmun said.

He said there will be no USOC investigation into the issues raised by IndyStar's investigation.

“We couldn’t possibly get in the business of investigating allegations of misconduct in 47 different NGBs (national governing bodies),” Blackmun was quoted as saying by The Washington Post.

"Sexual misconduct matters are the most challenging — and distressing — issues to cross my desk," the statement said in part.

"Regrettably, preventing sexual abuse is not as easy as it should be. There have been times when the organization has been hamstrung by a hearing process mandated by its compliance with the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act. Other times, the investigations themselves have taken frustrating twists and turns, including dealing with situations that had already been addressed in a court of law — where USA Gymnastics has no oversight — occurred more than 30 years ago or are the subject of ongoing investigations by law enforcement officials."

Experts told IndyStar that conducting internal investigations could be counterproductive, tainted by conflict of interest and actually impede a criminal probe.

Penny's statement also said, "USA Gymnastics has not tried to cover-up these matters. Quite the opposite: We have cooperated with law enforcement at every turn and our investigations have never been filtered by coaching credentials. Our ability to share information publicly has been hindered by pending litigation on cases, one of which was included in the Star’s story."

The statement ended with this: "The people who have been deeply affected by sexual abuse and have come forward — including those who found the strength after decades — are a reminder to me every day of the serious nature of abuse, and USA Gymnastics remains committed to doing what is necessary to address this challenging issue."

In their letter, the senators noted that the Olympics were starting and "will inspire many young athletes to work to achieve their dreams, and many will be inspired to become gymnasts. USA Gymnastics has a responsibility to ensure that these young athletes are safe."